How to know if your child needs help

---

HealthWiki > Helping Children Who Are Deaf > Chapter 2: Children who cannot hear well need help early > How to know if your child needs help

---

In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

Babies develop at their own pace. Some develop more quickly than others. But most children grow and develop new skills at about the same age. By age 2, most children can speak or sign about 50 to 200 words. A child usually knows about 900 words at age 3, and 1500 words by age 4.

The important thing is that a child continue to learn new skills. But when a child is not learning a skill even long after other children

her age have learned it, this is usually a sign that she may have a problem or need extra help.

This chart describes some of the communication skills children learn and when most children learn them. Parents can use the chart to decide which skills their children already know, and which skills they need to learn. To decide what activities to do first, start by asking yourself, "Is my child doing everything that other children his age are doing?" See Child Development Charts for more information on the ages and order in which children usually learn new skills.

3 months		6 months
responds to familiar voices or faces reacts to sudden sounds or movements		makes simple sounds or gestures turns head toward movements or sounds

1 year		2 years
joins sounds together or repeats hand shapes begins to name things understands and responds to simple words or signs imitates single signs	ba-ba ga-ga	uses simple words or signs uses sentences with 2 and 3 words or signs knows 50 to 200 words or signs	My cup.

3 years		5 years
understands most simple language knows and uses 500 to 1000 words or signs	Where is the biscuit? I ate it.	talks or signs about what he has done asks many questions	What are those people doing?

NOTE: Some children who cannot hear well may have other problems. Their minds and bodies could be slow to develop for other reasons. See the book Disabled Village Children for more information on how to help a child whose mind and/or body are slow to develop.

You can help your child learn

If you think your child's communication is not developing as it should, you can help him learn. Parents often think that only someone with professional training can help their child. But as a parent, you know your child better than anyone else, so you can make a big difference in his development.

Other children Ali's age know how to behave with each other. I think it's important for him to learn how to get along with other children.

This page was updated:09 Aug 2022